


Beneath the Mask

by PonderingFool



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Akira has Issues, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, F/M, Gen, NG+ Akira, The Phantom Thieves are Good Friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2018-11-15 13:47:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11232276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PonderingFool/pseuds/PonderingFool
Summary: Please don't take off my mask, revealing dark.Please don't take off my mask, my place to hide.Please don't take off my mask, my disguise.I need the mask...AU: Akira unlocks his Persona at the same time as Akechi





	1. The Very Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> "The real question to be asked, where have I been?"

 "...I didn't expect it'd be you."

Sae Niijima; public prosecutor and rising star of the SIU with a look in her eyes that could kill a man at 20 paces, or so the rumours told. Of course, now that he was sat right across from her he could safely say the rumours did her no justice; if looks could kill, the Reaper itself would be six feet under before it even made eye-contact. Although, there seemed to be a hint of sadness in her voice like she was wishing it hadn't been him. It was hard to tell and between the concussion and the drugs he was probably just imagining things, but it gave him a small amount of hope that this wasn't going to be as painful a procedure as he thought it would be.

It didn't matter though; whatever hint of emotion had been there was gone as soon as it had arrived and he was once again trapped in an interrogation room with only a prosecutor with a vendetta and an almost guaranteed promotion on the line for company.

"You'll be answering my questions this time."

Sae knew something was wrong almost as soon as she'd entered the room. She's seen Akira once or twice at the end of a few visits at Leblanc and just from the look in his eyes figured he was a sharp one, or at least far more so than his unkempt looks and slouched posture would lead someone to believe. But his gaze looked unfocused and his body unsteady, like he was struggling to stay conscious. The prosecutor was trying to deduce exactly what the police had done to him when she spotted something on the floor. She turned her head to the ground and saw, to her shock and disgust, a discarded syringe. Sae had seen and grown used to a lot of abhorrent behaviours during her time at the SIU, but drugging detainees was a new low and offended all of her remaining sensibilities.

"Those bastards..." she scoffed. Leaving aside the ethical implications, the drugging and probable concussion from the police's 'questioning' would make his entire testimony suspect.

"Can you hear me? It seems you've been through a lot."  His eyes followed her movements, so that was a good sign. Regardless, she didn't have the time to make sure he was entirely there.

"Almost anything can happen here...and I can't stop them. That's why I need you to answer me honestly. I don't have much time either. What was your objective? Why did you cause such a major incident?"

No response.

"I didn't think it was a prank from the get-go, but I couldn't assemble a case for prosecution. It's because I couldn't figure out the method behind it."

"Hmph. Of course you couldn't..." The words were slurred, but he didn't seem to have any other troubles with articulation. Although, that slight and almost certainly smug smile was already starting to getting on her nerves.

"True. There's no way I could be convinced of such a... 'world' just be reading the reports."

He seemed to perk up at that. "So, you've heard about the Metaverse? Good, I suppose that'll save some time..."

So it seemed like bringing up this 'Metaverse' was the best way to get him to talk. Interesting.

"It seems you're coherent. Tell me, when and where did you find out about that world? How is it even possible to steal another's heart? Tell me your account of everything, and start from the very beginning."

He rested his head on the palm of his hand, no doubt nursing a horrible headache. 

"To answer that first question, I was fourteen when I found out. Didn't know how it happened at first. One moment I was walking around the rapid transit and the next I was in some weird, desolate version of it. With the benefit of hindsight, I got too close to someone who was entering the Metaverse and got dragged in with them."

"So you discovered the Metaverse by complete accident?"

"Mhmm. The only way to get in is for someone to take you, accidentally or otherwise."

It was mostly true. It was certainly how the rest of the Phantom Thieves had gained the ability. Well, from their perspectives it was true. But then, not even they knew about Igor or the Velvet Room, so he wasn't exactly in a hurry to tell the prosecutor trying to put him in prison.

"And what did you do on that day?"

"Didn't think much of it. I hadn't been getting much sleep, so I figured it was just some sort of fatigue-induced hallucination and went back the way I came, which took me out."

"And how did you return to the Metaverse."

"If you're asking for the exact mechanics, I don't know truth be told. I think about it and if the conditions are right, it just happens."

Another lie. If he brought up the app, then his friend's phones would be searched and all the effort he put into ensuring they got away safely would be for naught. The suspicion was written plainly on her face, but she had no means of proving him wrong and any skepticism about his methods would be arbitrary at this point in the interrogation. However, he'd have to be careful about not giving any contradictory information in the future.

"I see. Well since you unlocked this power so long ago, I think we'll go over some other information." she stated, filing that mention of 'condition's away for later.

"So, I understand your parents were-"

"No comment." Akira spat harshly. Sae was tempted to press him for information regardless of his protests, but his home life wasn't of any particular relevance to the case so she was fine with letting it slide for now. This was mostly just for clarification anyway.

"Understandable. However, comments from your old teachers indicate that you were disobedient and attention-seeking. Can you verify this?"

He nodded this time but looked no less uncomfortable with the line of questioning.

"Lastly, it was around two years ago that incidents similar to those committed by the Phantom Thieves began occurring. People would receive an e-mail or letter threatening to 'reveal their true nature' followed by them turning themselves in and admitting to crimes, almost as if their personalities had completely changed and with no evidence of blackmail. Were those your doing?"

"Indeed they were. Took me a while to figure out how to do it, but I got there."

Sensing her first opportunity of the interrogation, Sae leaned forward, unfolding her arms to appear less threatening.

"I hope you realise how dire this situation is for you. Troubled home life, notorious problem-child and numerous prior incidents matching your modus operandi as a Phantom Thief. On top of the assault on your record and the charges you're currently facing, you'll almost certainly be facing life imprisonment or the death penalty."

"Death penalty? Guess that means 'manslaughter' is getting upgraded to 'murder'. Reckon they'll throw in terrorism on top of that?"

His flippant attitude was entirely inappropriate, but it didn't change the fact that he was most likely correct in his assessment. The Phantom Thieves had done a lot to damage the reputation of the police, something that never ended well for the detainee responsible. Even if they couldn't get anything solid on him, it was almost certain they'd fabricate a crime to stick to him.

"Probably, but that doesn't mean we can't strike a deal. If you cooperate with me, I'll consider lightening your sentence."

That seemed to catch his attention, although it didn't seem like a hopeful reaction.

"A deal...?"

"If you can tell me the identities of your fellow Phantom Thieves, I'm sure we'll be able to strike a plea bargain. We already have an idea on who your co-conspirators might be, so this is just saving both of us time and saving you a lot of pain in the future."

"There's no-one else. I worked alone." he stated instantly, and with no small amount of venom behind the words. Perhaps if he wasn't drugged, his response would've been more measured and calculated, but alas that was not the case. In fact, such an aggressive response only solidified her belief that there were others who worked with and supported him.

"Do you honestly expect me to believe that?"

"It's the truth, take it how you will."

His voice was calmer this time, but he'd recognised his mistake far too late. He'd answered too quickly and venomously, confirming beyond all doubt that he did have accomplices. If he'd refused to make this easier for either of them, then she'd just have to coax the truth out of him.

"So, you deny having accomplices, but admit that you've been doing this for almost three years?"

"Mhmm."

"I see. Moving forward to late February of this year; you were convicted of assault, but your testimony says that you were defending a woman, that the man tripped and fell on his own due to intoxication and forced the woman to lie and say you attacked him."

"He was...a politician? I don't remember, but it was the word of an important figure against that of a 'notorious problem-child' and friendless weirdo. No-one doubted it for a second, not even my grandparents. I was expelled faster than you could spell the word."

"So you stand by what you said?"

"Of course."

"Very well. I asked got in contact with your neighbours and they believed you'd been sent to a very strict boarding school, yet you wound up in the attic of a coffee store. Care to explain that?"

"No comment. "

"Very well. Moving forward, you transferred to Shujin Academy, correct? An ordinary prep school that could be found in any city. That's what it should've been."

"With someone like Kamoshida around? Don't make me laugh."

"Perhaps, but you know that's not what I meant. What happened around that time? Tell me everything. Truthfully."

"Fine. I suppose you wanted to know how to steal another person's heart anyway..."

* * *

The weather was, if nothing else, appropriate for the situation at hand. Gloomy and miserable were the only words that could describe how Akira felt about transferring to a new school, especially after the reception he'd gotten in the principles office. After all, his own homeroom teacher wanting nothing to do with him didn't exactly bode well and the principle himself was hardly any better. Akira sighed wearily, doing his best to calm down. After all, it wasn't as if he could do anything about his current situation. Not unless he found that drunken pervert again...

Glancing up from his phone, Akira noticed someone else taking cover from the rain next to him. So the rain probably wasn't going to let up anytime soon, but it wasn't like he could control the weather. If only he- oh!

The stranger, presumably another student at Shujin, pulled her hood down and Akira had to admit that she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. It was almost uncanny; ever since he'd been visited by Igor he'd been too busy with the Metaverse and his studies to bother with any ideas of romance and yet this woman had captivated him so easily. Even when she turned to look at him, he just couldn't stop staring. Oh well, she didn't seem to mind the attention and Akira eventually managed to get his hormones under control enough to stop staring.

He didn't have much time to dwell on his new-found and hopefully very temporary infatuation before a car pulled up at the sidewalk and the man within offer her a ride. The offer had been extended to him as well, but the thought of making small-talk was more terrifying than any of the shadows he'd fought up until this point and he respectfully declined. That miserable look on the woman's eyes set off a lot of alarm bells in his mind though, as did the blonde man who ran up to where the car had been parked a moment ago and cursed the man as a 'pervy teacher'

"Pervy...teacher?" he asked, hoping for an elaboration.

"What do you want? You plannin' on ratting me out to Kamoshida?"

Truth be told, the blonde looked and sounded like a thug, but Akira had seen enough in Mementos to know that judging based on appearances was a foolish thing to do.

"Kamoshida?"

"Huh? In that car just now. It was Kamoshida." he stated, obviously confused by Akira's questioning. Well, at least now he could safely assume that Kamoshida was the man and not the woman.

"He does whatever the hell he wants. Who does he think he is- the king of the castle? Don't you agree?"

"Which castle?" Akira asked sarcastically.

"Uh, it's just a sayin'...wait. You don't know Kamoshida? Are you for real? You're from Shujin, right?"

"I'm new here." Akira responded with a shake of his head.

"Huh? But you're a second-year...oh, you a transfer student?"

The blonde seemed to relax a bit after that, and he looked much less hostile as well. Was this what making a friend was like? Akira hoped not.

"Hmph. Then no wonder you don't know him. Anyway, this rain ain't too bad. We better hurry up, or we'll be late."

Neither of them got very far before he stopped to clutch at his head, groaning in pain, and that was when Akira panicked. Had they entered the Metaverse? It felt like he had, but the scenery hadn't changed. Was the distortion just weak in this area?

"Uuugh, my head hurts...dammit...I wanna go home..."

Oh, right. Well if they had entered Kamoshida's Paradise, Akira couldn't let what's-his-name wander off on his own, and he didn't know where the exit was so he couldn't just make him leave. With an irritable sight, Akira made sure to follow the blonde very closely, the path he walked taking them several sketchy-looking back-alleys. Paranoia mounting, Akira couldn't keep his eyes focused straight ahead, instead constantly looking to the sides, behind and even above them in case a shadow attacked them out of nowhere. In fact, he almost would've sworn that he saw someone behind him until he heard a sharp and startled 'what' from his blonde companion. Forcing himself to walk slowly as to not look suspicious, Akira walked up to the edge of the alleyway, taking note of the giant, medieval castle that stood proudly where Shujin Academy was supposed to be and bathed in the unnatural purple light.

"Yep. That's a Paradise alright." Akira thought to himself.

"We didn't....come the wrong way though...yeah, this should be right."

He knew where the exit was now, so forcing the blonde through it wouldn't be hard. He'd have to act fast though; things would get problematic if they stayed in the Metaverse any longer or if the other guy saw him in his thief attire. Darting forward and into the distortion, Akira covered the blonde's eyes with one hand and grabbed his torso with the other to spin him around before tossing him across the exit to the Metaverse a bit more harshly than he had intended. Akira followed him soon after, his thief attire and the Castle disappearing almost instantaneously.

"Gaagh! What the eff' is your problem?!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't give me that shit! You- wait, where'd the castle go?!"

"What castle? Are you okay? You spaced out for a moment and then fell to the ground?"

"Wha-?! But I-I could've sworn..."

"Seriously, are you okay? You didn't hit your head on the train or something, did you?"

 No! Of course not, I just...ah forget it."

Akira was starting to worry for a moment, but it seemed like what's-his-name wasn't going to push the issue and besides, it wasn't like he could get back into the Metaverse without the Navigator. Still, he'd have to look into this Kamoshida guy. Day one of his new life and he already found his first target, and one with a Paradise no less! Realistically, he should be far more concerned than happy right now; a teacher with a Paradise did not bode well for the school's environment or the students he supervised but this knowledge was exactly what he needed right now, even if he knew that the reassurance was far from needed.

Nothing had changed, his routine would remain the same.

The mask didn't have to come off...

* * *

He made it to class on time. Barely.

"He looks normal though..."

"But he might slug us if we look him in the eye..."

Listening to the whispers makes him wish he'd called in sick and stayed in bed the whole day. Akira hadn't expected his record to stay secret forever, but whispers and rumours on the first day of school were a bit much.

"Settle down. I'd like to introduce a transfer student; Kurusu Akira. Alright, please say something to the class."

He should probably say something, but listening to them whisper and gossip made it so that he'd rather bite his tongue off, and so he lets a thick and uncomfortable silence fall over the room as he stares at his shoes.

"He seems quiet...but I bet when he loses it..."

"I mean, he was arrested for assault, right?"

If her awkward reaction was anything to go by, Ms. Kawakami is hearing the exact same thing he is. She stammered uncertainly for a brief moment before directing him to his seat and requesting the people next to him share their textbooks with him for the day.

"Urgh, this sucks!"

Akira agreed with the other student's assessment, but for an entirely different reason. Oh well, his seat was right next to the window so he'd be able to daydream pretty easily. Not like he was going to learn anything in the class he wouldn't prefer to learn on his own. He recognises the blonde girl from earlier as he makes his way over to the desk and thankfully managed to resist gawking at her. They made eye-contact for a moment and almost as soon as Akira realises that doing so after very pointedly refusing to have even the tiniest of interactions with anyone else was a mistake and looked away, the room is engulfed in a fresh wave of pointless rumour-mongering.

"Did you catch that? Do those two know each other?"

"Ooh." some brown-haired student cooed. "Does that mean he hit on her before transferring here?"

"That means she's cheating on him with Mr. Kamoshida!"

Akira almost misses that last comment amidst his desperate attempts to zone-out, and it takes far more effort than it should've to suppress the groan swelling up within him. Presumably sixteen-years-old Takamaki cheating on him with middle-aged teacher Kamoshida?

"Of all the things he could've been..." Akira thought to himself. "Why did he have to be a sex-offender?"

The sex-offender Paradises were always the worst; the scantily clad (if they even wore clothes at all) cognitions of sometimes criminally-young women and the excessively sexualised interior design never failed to make his skin crawl. Not to mention the Maru's that always swarmed the place, or the Incubi and Succubi for that matter.

Oh well, it would be satisfying to make him confess to his crimes and it had been a while since the last Paradise target. It'd be a good stress relief, as long as nothing went wrong.

* * *

"The hell is this?!"

Ryuji may not have been the smartest kid around. Hell, he was almost certainly one of the dumbest if you wanted to judge things by an academic standard, but even he knew that he hadn't installed whatever this weird app this was.

He should be ignoring it, class had started and the thing was almost certainly filled with a million viruses that would ruin his phone in a billion different ways, but there was something...off about the app. Like he was being compelled to open it. Hoping to every higher power he could think of, he opened up the app and hoped that his phone wouldn't get hacked or whatever. It didn't ruin his phone or anything, but it didn't answer a whole lot of questions either. It looked like some kind of weird navigation app since it was asking him for a destination, but he already had a location bookmarked? This was getting freaky...

Still, the bookmark had that bastard Kamoshida's name on it, and agitation and curiosity were absolutely not a good combination for Ryuji.

"Kamoshida...Shujin Academy...Castle..."

"What...?"

"Beginning navigation."


	2. Phantom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm a shape shifter, at Poe's masquerade..."

"Kurusu! Pay attention! Is that how you listen when someone's talking to you!?"

Someone with a tad more common sense would've recognised that being a notorious transfer student with an assault on his record, that the teachers would be paying more attention to him than the average student and that attempting to daydream through his classes wasn't going to end well. Akira however, was quite content to continue staring out the window until called out. It wasn't like they really did anything about it; they just asked a question to make sure he was paying attention to the lecture and left him alone once he answered correctly.

This teacher was a bit different though.

Akira, a former ne'er-do-well class clown, recognised the all-too-familiar movement out of the corner of his eye and, through years of prior experience, casually dodged the chalk stick hurled at him by Ushimaru.

"Whoa! That was an epic dodge!"

"That was nuts! Is he a ninja?"

Ushimaru didn't seem to know how to respond to that, instead choosing to move on with the lesson and leaving Akira to his daydreaming. Something that suited Akira just fine, considering that most of the lecture seemed to consist of complaining about how easy the younger generations had it and how they were growing up spoiled. It was a shame too; he seemed like a decent-enough teacher when he was talking about things that were actually relevant to the lesson. But then again, Akira wasn't really paying attention to what he was saying in the first place, so perhaps he was missing something obvious.

Lunch rolled around soon enough after that and Akira didn't know where to get food. He wasn't going anywhere near the cafeteria food without verifying that it wasn't the stereotypical slop, but considering that he wouldn't get anything out of a conversation with the students here aside from a few terrified stares, that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. He could probably go to somewhere near the school and it wasn't like money was an issue for him with his frequent forays into Mementos, but the thought of eating in a public area made his stomach twist. All things considered, he'd probably be best off grabbing some fast-food and finding somewhere isolated. But then again...

"Did you hear? Sakamoto hasn't shown up to school."

Akira felt himself go cold for a second but brushed it off. It wasn't like the name 'Sakamoto' meant anything to him. It was probably just a coincidence.

"Are you surprised? Honestly, I'm just shocked that he wasn't expelled after what happened with Kamoshida."

So 'Sakamoto' was a delinquent who had been in an incident with Kamoshida. Cursing under his breath, Akira hurried out of the school and pulled up the Metaverse Navigator. It was probably nothing, the blonde shouldn't be able to enter the Metaverse. Not unless Igor had given him the Navigator for some reason. But still, better to be wrong and waste his lunch than to consider the alternative.

* * *

"Urgh, my head..."

Ryuji clutched at the wound on his head as he desperately tried to piece together exactly what was happening. His head was caked with dried blood from the punch he'd taken and his ribs felt like they were on fire, but at least he was alive and considering that those freaky knights had been openly brandishing swords as they accused him of trespassing, the blonde was perfectly thankful for it.

"No, plea-GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

The screaming never failed to send a chill down his spine. At first, he'd tried to play it cool, but his own cell being filled with torture instruments and the screaming coming closer with every passing moment had long-since shattered whatever confidence he had built up in himself.

"None of this makes sense..."

He'd been willing to brush off what he'd seen earlier; he hadn't slept well that night and the transfer student had looked at him like he was insane when he mentioned the castle. But then that app installed itself on his phone and the castle appeared again and-

Ryuji's head snapped up as heard the screaming stop and the footsteps grew closer to his own cell.

* * *

"Where is the dungeon? How many prisoners do you have here?"

"I ain't tellin' you anything!"

Not even close to being in the mood for the usual negotiation routine, Akira shot the Pixie to the right before pointing his pistol back at the Mandrake.

"Okay, okay! The dungeon's through that door! We have two prisoners, some kinda freaky cat-monster, and a blonde kid!"

Akira was going to punch Igor in his ridiculously big-nosed face for this.

Actually no, he wouldn't. Fighting Caroline and Justine had left him on the border of passing out by the time he'd won and Igor was, by all indication, far stronger than the both of them put together. Attempting to punch him would almost certainly end poorly.

Besides, Caroline would get angry at him for even floating the idea and Caroline was  _scary_ when she was angry, even if she and her sister had eased up on him since they'd first met. Oh well, he'd just have to approach the topic with a calm and open mind and politely ask why Igor thought giving the navigator to some  _random-ass_ blonde kid he'd talked to for not even five _fucking_ minutes was a good idea. Yeah, that'd work.

Caroline would still probably get angry at him, but there wasn't much he could do about that.

Akira sprinted as fast as he could through the halls of the castle and nearly fell down the stairs to the dungeon in his haste. Quite a few guards noticed him as he ran past them without a care as to whether or not he was seen, but he'd cross that bridge when he came to it. The Phantom Thief even heard young, boyish voice yell out to him for help, to which he could only respond with a promise that he'd get him on the way back. Must've been the 'cat-monster' the Mandrake mentioned.

Finally,  _thankfully,_ Akira arrived on the last floor of the dungeon, and not a moment too soon considering that the blonde kid was being pressed up against the wall by his neck, the shadow's blade poised to pierce his skull. Acting quickly and with more than a little desperation, Akira drew his pistol and fired at each of the knights in the cell, the creatures dissolving into nothing instantly. Seizing the opportunity presented to him, Ryuji shoved Shadow Kamoshida to the floor. Akira shouted a reminded to grab the keys and the door to the cell was locked in short order, trapping Shadow Kamoshida inside.

_"Mon dieu! The fiend's attire_ offends _me!"_

Normally, Arsène's obsession with style and aesthetics was nothing more than amusing, but the way Shadow Kamoshida dressed was downright _tragic_ even by the already-flimsy standards of Paradise owners. Seriously, love-heart cape, brown loafers, and a hot-pink speedo? Forget his real-world crimes, that outfit alone was enough to justify breaking his rule against slaying the Shadow Selves, he'd even be able to write it off as a mercy kill.

_"Ah, so you concur Monsieur? Excellent! We shall make a true Phantom Thief of you yet!"_

"Hey man, thanks for saving my ski- hey, you're that guy from earlier! What the eff' are-"

"You really want to do this _now_!?" Akira spat a lot more harshly than he intended. "Let's worry about getting out of here before anything else, yes?"

"Alright, alright! Sheesh, what are  _you_ getting so pissy for? I'm the one who almost died!"

He could trade quips with Sakamoto all day if he wanted to, but that wouldn't get them out of danger. Well, get  _him_ out of danger at least; judging by the quality of the enemies he'd faced Akira would be able to get his infiltration route secured in a couple of hours at worst. Sakamoto however, had no means of defending himself and would almost certainly get himself killed if they stuck around for too long.

The two had almost crossed the drawbridge before Akira remembered his promise.

"Dammit, hang on..."

"Hey! What are you doing!?"

_"Well this is an interesting development, wouldn't you say Monsieur?"_

The shadow hadn't exactly been  _wrong_ when they said they had imprisoned a cat-monster, but what Akira saw was less of a 'monster' and more like a 'mascot'. The disproportionately large head and the absurdly tiny body was certainly typical of the kid-appeal mascots he was familiar with, but didn't certainly answer the ever-important questions of who, what, how and most importantly, why?

"Gah! What is this thing!?"

"You're not soldiers of this castle, right!? Get me out of here! Look, the key's right there!"

"We're trying to get the hell out of here...! I mean, you obviously look like an enemy too!"

Screw it, might as well address the obvious elephant in the room.

"So...why are you a cat?"

"I am NOT a cat! Say that again and I'll make you regret it!"

He wouldn't be able to, Akira was fully confident that this ca- whatever he (it?) is was no threat to him. But still, best to leave the touchy subjects alone. Especially considering that he could hear the guards catching up to them.

"They're catchin' up already...!" Sakamoto whispered, checking his phone for reception. "Shit, there's still no service. Ain't there any way to contact someone outside!? How the hell do we get out...!?"

"Hey, you two! You wanna get out of here? There's no way you'll make it past all those guards without my help. You don't want to get caught and executed, right?"

"You'd better not be lying." Akira threatened as he opened the door. Truth be told, they didn't _need_ his help. He and Arsène alone would be able to tear this place down at the seams, never mind what would happen if he brought his other Personas into the equation. But that would raise a line of questioning from both the not-a-cat and Sakamoto that he  _really_ didn't want to have to deal with and besides, it wasn't like he could just leave the not-a-cat here just because he wasn't immediately useful.

"Ahhh... freedom tastes so great..."

"Now, get us out of here you monster cat!"

"Don't call me a cat! I am Morgana!"

Well, it was good to have a name if nothing else, Akira could hardly just keep calling him not-a-cat. Still, it was somewhat annoying to feign ignorance as Morgana made an effort to teach both him and Sakamoto what he had, rather accurately, described as the 'most basic-of-basics'. But regardless of how annoying that was, it was nowhere  _near_ as irritating as having to listen to Arsène's complaints on the matter.

_"Playing the part of amateur goes against my aesthetics."_

"Well, realistically it's  _me_ playing the part of amateur.  _You're_ not involved." he thought, knowing perfectly well that Arsène could hear him.

_"So you say, but your refusal to take part in battle because your Persona is, and I quote, 'too weak and feeble' says otherwise!"_

"You're such a prima donna." Akira responded with a smirk.

Whatever overly-dramatic response Arsène had prepared was swiftly drowned out by the sound of Sakamoto tearing the metal grating from its hinges, followed by the sound of Sakamoto and the metal grating hitting the ground with all the grace and subtly of a sack of bricks and no doubt alerting every shadow nearby to their presence.

"Oww... crap! The enemy didn't hear us, did they? Seriously, we're finally gettin' outta here...!"

"They almost certainly did, but it's too late for them to do anything about it."

"You two should wait on celebrating until you actually get out. Now get going."

"But... what about you?" Sakamoto asked, clearly concerned for Morgana's safety."

"There's something that I still have to do. We're going our separate ways. Be careful on your way."

It took Sakamoto awhile to crawl through the vent with his injuries and the swearing was more than a little excessive, but they got through eventually. Irritatingly, Caroline hadn't shown up with a gate to the Velvet Room but Akira supposed it was for the best considering the mood he was in. Oh well, Id, Ego, and Superego would just have to wait a bit longer.

"Oh man, we're finally outta there!"

"Yes, but I'm afraid we're not leaving yet. Not until we sort out your alibi."

"My what?"

"It was lunchtime when I came in here to rescue you. We need to come up with a reason for why you're so late and for why I'm missing class right now."

"...Ah shit, you're right. Don't suppose you've got any ideas?"

* * *

Kamoshida was in a good mood. No, scratch that, he was in a  _great_ mood. Sakamoto had shown up to school at the start of fifth period and that transfer student had been caught with him. He finally had the excuse he needed to get that little shit expelled and with any luck, the transfer student would be going with him. Sauntering arrogantly up to the help desk, he asked the woman where Ryuji and Akira were and was directed to the nurse's office of all places. Kamoshida could barely contain his glee at the thought of getting into a fight! Principal Kobayakawa would have no choice but to expel him now. It took all of his willpower to force his friendly PE teacher façade as he all but barged his way into the nurse's office.

"Kamoshida!" Ryuji exclaimed in equal parts shock and fury.

"You seem so carefree, Sakamoto. Quite a difference from when you did morning practice for the track team." Kamoshida responded, unable to help himself from rubbing salt into those old wounds. Hell, if Ryuji was stupid enough to try and punch him he'd be able to get away with breaking his other leg too.

"So, what do you have to say for yourself? Skipping school to get into fights? You're almost certainly going to get expelled for this you know..."

"I didn't get into a fight asshole! I got mugged!"

"How dare you talk like that to Kamoshida-san!" the counselor shouted from where he was standing in the corner.

"Come now, my words weren't exactly considerate either. Let's just say that we were both to blame."

The false sincerity radiating off of him was enough to make Akira cringe as he tried to decide which was worse; the pathetically low amount of effort he put into appearing like a normal teacher or the fact that such a low amount of effort was apparently enough to have the school faculty wrapped around his finger.

"So you got mugged huh? Got any witnesses?"

"That would be me."

"Hmm... you're that new transfer student, correct? Kurusu Akira... have we met somewhere?"

"I saw a girl in your car."

"That's right... I remember now. So, why don't you enlighten me as to what happened? You  _are_ his witness after all."

There it was, the  _real_ reason why Kamoshida was here. Unfortunately for him, Akira was  _very_ good at making up excuses.

"I saw him getting mugged on my way to school. I wanted to help him, but he told me to just run since they had knives on them. I took his advice and left him there, but got nervous when I heard that someone named 'Sakamoto' hadn't shown up to school at lunchtime."

"So you went back for him, huh?"

"Yep. Found him propped up against a wall in the alley I found him in. Felt bad about leaving there, so I gave him my phone, wallet, and bag as a repayment for the stuff they took from him."

"Ah, but why wouldn't someone else come to his aid? It's far more likely he skipped school and got into a fight."

"Take a look at him, would _you_ help him? People probably assumed he was getting shaken down for money he took from a loan shark or that he was on drugs when they saw him."

He heard Sakamoto call him a dickhead for that one under his breath, but he didn't think much of it. Better to suffer the temporary embarrassment of the lie than to try and tell them the truth of the matter or let Kamoshida's mind wander and come to its own conclusions.

"Well, why was he in the same alley? Surely he would've tried to get help on his own." Kamoshida said, the arrogance dripping from his voice a clear sign that he thought this was a 'gotcha' question.

"He couldn't even walk under his own power when I found him. Told me that the muggers attacked his leg which, combined with lingering issues from a pre-existing injury, made it impossible for him to even stand up. I've been told you're aware of that other injury."

That one got to him. Kamoshida could hardly deny the existence of those issues when he was the one responsible for them. The look on his face was one of understanding as he considered his words and came to the conclusion that Akira was most likely correct, but there was no mistaking the seething fury in his eyes. When Kamoshida spoke next, it was in agreement with the story Akira had provided and offering a crappy, insincere apology for doubting the two of them. The bit after that was much more candid, albeit significantly less friendly.

"I'm sure you've heard from the principal, but cause any trouble and you'll be expelled. Understand?"

"Crystal."

The intent behind the message was clear; Akira now had a target on his back.

* * *

"The school turned into an old castle...? A talking cat...?"

"Well, the school didn't  _literally_ turn into a castle. It was simply the manifestation of how Kamoshida viewed the school. As for the cat...okay, you've got me there. I don't really understand it either."

"...Are you hallucinating from an overdose? I won't put up with you if you're simply joking around."

"Well I can't promise you that they  _didn't_ overdose me, but I can assure you I'm not hallucinating yet."

Sae's stony expression cracked for a moment as she quickly glanced at the syringe on the floor. She didn't know exactly what they'd put into him, but if they  _had_ overdosed him things were going to get complicated very quickly.

"I'm going to have you continue the story. As you know, Suguru Kamoshida was the first to receive a calling card from the Phantom Thieves. It's true that what he did were deplorable crimes from... indulging his desire. He confe-"

"Don't sugarcoat it. He raped fourteen students over eight years and every student he every coached and quite a few he hadn't have come forward about being sexually harassed, physically abused or both. And this is without getting into the blackmail, the malicious slander and expelling students purely because he didn't like them."

"Well there's no denying any of that, but it doesn't change the fact that there should've been no connection between the two of you since you had just transferred. Why did you target him?"

"Are the above reasons not enough? What he was doing was practically an open secret. As for a connection between us, you know he was the one who leaked my record."

"Fair enough, but I need more details than that."

"Well I'm not exactly in a position to turn you down, am I? Now, where was I...?"


	3. King, Queen, and Slaves (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Without a clue, without a sign..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm really sorry about the lack of updates. I've been struggling with my depression, so it's been impossible to work up the motivation for this. I'm gonna try and post smaller chapters and see if that helps.

"I'm sure you've heard from the principal, but cause any trouble and you'll be expelled. Understand?"

"Crystal."

The intent behind the message was clear; Akira now had a target on his back. 

"Well that's good! We obviously don't want you getting into trouble. For your own good as well as the school's reputation."

Kamoshida's change in attitude was as sudden as it was unconvincing. One moment he was treating him like the worst kind of scum and the next pretending to care about his well-being. It was lucky for him that every single faculty member could be safely assumed to be covering up his crimes or else his charade wouldn't have lasted very long.

"I must admit, it's pretty admirable for you to help someone like Sakamoto. If you ask me, the worthless trash in this world are better off ignored."

The nurse's indifferent response to the statement was almost a relief compared to the counsellor's immediate and wholehearted agreement. Akira couldn't decide whether or not he actually agreed or if he was merely brown-nosing, but hearing such things coming from the mouth of a  _counsellor_ of all things was extremely disturbing regardless of his reasoning.

"Perhaps, but I think I'll decide who's 'worthless trash' for myself."

Despite the fact that bothering him with such a simple statement was pleasing in a way, the death-glare Kamoshida shot at him was undoubtedly concerning. His volatile mood swings could prove dangerous if he wasn't dealt with quickly.

"Tch, if you say so. Anyway, I'm gonna head off now. Coaching a national volleyball team takes a lot of work."

Selfish, violent, lecherous,  _and_  annoyingly self-aggrandising. It was almost as if he was running through a checklist on how to be the biggest scumbag he possibly could.

_"Well at least he can't be worse than that Matsuo fellow."_

"Don't jinx it. Every time you say we can't possibly find someone worse-"

_"What can I say Monsieur? You're quite talented at discovering the worst mankind has to offer."_

"Hmm. Too bad I can't discover a source of infinite money instead."

_"Have you forgotten-"_

"No, the Metaverse doesn't count. If I have to risk my life for it, it doesn't count."

_"Risking your life is a bit of an exaggerati- "_

"Can you please stop being so pedantic for five minutes."

_"Why? Are you tired and stressed? It's almost as if getting a mere four hours of sleep is unhealthy."_

"If you say so mother."

* * *

The rest of Akira's classes passed by uneventfully, albeit mostly because of his own inability to pay attention to what any of his teachers had to say. Even by his normal standards of inattentiveness, the added stress and irritation of the day's events had made after the confrontation with Kamoshida an indistinguishable blur.

Oh well, he'd just have to spend a little bit more time in the library than normal.

_"Are you sure this is a good idea Monsieur? Perhaps you should treat yourself  and relax for the day. Maybe try out those baths near Leblanc?"_

"Some other time."

Shujin's library was nothing to write home about; maybe a bit bigger than what he was used to, but nothing fancy like what you'd expect from a prestigious university. However, the fact that it was quiet and peaceful was perfectly fine for him, regardless of overall grandeur. Even the other students merely stared and fidgeted as opposed to the blatant rumour-mongering he'd grown used to over the course of the day.

_"Meh, I've seen better."_

"Well as far as I'm concerned, it might as well be Heaven-on-Earth."

"Oh... Is this your first time at the library?" the third-year over at the desk ask, waving him over. Filled with apprehension and dread, Akira sauntered over and let the woman explain the almost-insultingly obvious rules for using the library.

"That badge...are you a second-year? Oh...could you be that transfer student I keep hearing about!?"

"Yeah. And?" Akira asked with no small amount of hostility, as if daring her to do something about it.

_"Please don't do anything foolish."_

"I knew it... um, I don't mean to be rude, but maybe you shouldn't come here... see, you're scaring the other students too. Oh...no, I didn't mean that you can't use the library, but..."

"Akira seethed internally at that, making a point of glaring at the other student as he walked off and sat down at the table in the middle of the room.

_"This can only end poorly..."_

"Why? I'm just sitting here."

_"Listen."_

To Akira's complete lack of surprise, the students in the library had begun to whisper in a completely unsubtle manner. Somehow they'd managed to find even more pointless drivel to gossip about; something about sitting right across from Niijima-senpai. That name brought up the image of two people;

The first was Niijima Sae; an SIU prosecutor assigned to the combined cases of the mental shutdowns, psychotic breakdowns and his own changes of hearts. It was a dead-end case with no leads and no evidence with which to find one and the staff working on it were a veritable who's who of people who had found themselves on the wrong end of SIU politics, assigned to the case not to solve it but in order to stunt the progression of their careers. Other notable individuals assigned to the case included Akechi Goro and Shirogane Naoto, both of whom were brought on as consultants although Shirogane had been taken off the case due to a poor working relationship with high-ranking SIU officials.

The other was Niijima Makoto; the younger sister of Sae. He'd learnt she was the Student Council President during a cursory browsing of Shujin's website. Significantly less interesting and dangerous to be sure, but as Student Council President and the daughter of two police officers she was almost certainly a very sharp and diligent person. He'd do well not to attract her attention.

_"Sitting at the same as the Student Council President? How bold! How daring!"_

"I hate to be the one to tell you this, but anime tropes don't apply to real life. She's not going to be some infallible goddes-"

"Excuse me, Kurusu-san. My name is Niijima Makoto, I'm the Student Council President here at Shujin. I hate to disturb your studies, but I need to speak with you."

Ignoring the intensified chatter of the students around them and forcing his best smile, Akira agreed and the two promptly packed up their books and left the library.

* * *

Makoto hadn't known what to expect from the infamous transfer student. She hated to stereotype based on rumours, but she had expected him to look like a thug; all muscle and no brains, distastefully dressed with an aggressive scowl. Even leaving aside his lanky physique and that he'd actually dressed properly, it was his facial appearance that had been the most shocking; the ghastly, unhealthy pallor of a man who never went outside, the dark circles and blood-shot eyes that were indicative of extremely poor sleep patterns, and the look in his eyes when they'd first made eye contact; calculating, piercing, and  _bitter_ , almost spiteful.

He looked like Sae, and that was a greater cause for concern then whatever stereotype could come to mind.

"So what did you want to see me for? I'm not in trouble, am I?"

He masked it a lot better than Sae though; if she hadn't seen that look on his face in the library she could've mistaken his putting-on-airs for a legitimately cheerful attitude. It was almost disturbing how well he could mimic such a sunny disposition, but Makoto forced those thoughts out of her mind; she didn't know anywhere near enough about him to making those sorts of judgement.

"No Kurusu-san, you're not in trouble. I just wanted to discuss the matter of your leaked records."

There was a subtle change in his eyes at that, for a brief moment the look he gave her was almost predatory. He had every right to be angry about this matter, but the look of hostility left her feeling very uneasy. The two of them took their seats, Makoto trying best to not give away her unease and Akira sat straight up, almost glaring at her.

"I want you to know that we're looking into the matter regarding who-"

"Was it a member of the student council?"

"No, as student council president I can assure you that we weren't responsible for-"

"So it was Kamoshida then."

Silence enveloped the room, thick enough to blunt whatever knife one used to try and cut it and as Makoto felt the blood drain from her face and her heart drop into her chest, Akira leaned back into his chair and crossed his arms, all pretenses of cheer dropped.

"I'll take the silence as a yes."

"How did you..."

"It was leaked into the school forums, which meant it was someone at this school rather than my old one. Only the student council and the staff would've been able to leak it so soon and Kamoshida has a...'reputation', shall we say. I also had a rather enlightening conversation with Sakamoto-san."

"Listen, you must-"

"Without meaning to offend Niijima-senpai, would it be okay if we discussed this some other time? I'm feeling extremely tired today as I'm sure you can tell from my looks."

Even though it was phrased as a question, Akira didn't wait for an answer, instead opting to leave the room in a hurry before Makoto could respond.

* * *

_"That was unnecessarily risky."_

"How do you figure?"

_"You should've taken a week to acclimate yourself to this place and investigate the rumours! What if they were false? She would report you to the principal! She still might! Not to mention storming off like that makes you look incredibly suspicious."_

"So what? I was right."

_"You've changed Monsieur. Ever since that incident, your palace-"_

"I know, I know. What do you want me to do? Nearly get myself killed having a twelfth go at fighting my almost-literally unkillable shadow?"

_"Fine, what exactly are we going to do now? Explore Kamoshida's palace, visit the student council president in mementos and make sure she isn't complicit and...?"_

"And if my suspicions are correct,  _kill the cat..."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know some of you noted that Mementos doesn't work the way I implied at the end. It's a plot point, so bear with me.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I've been having in NG+ preparing for a Merciless run and stomping over everything in my way when I thought about how the main story would change if Akira had NG+ levels of power. Hope you like it!
> 
> Your comments are what sustain my existence in this world.


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